Another strategy for assessing texts critically

Another strategy for assessing texts critically

When assessing and engaging with a text consider the:

O – ORIGIN

C - CONTENT

N – NATURE OF TEXT

A – AUDIENCE

M – MOTIVE

R – RELIABILITY

U- USEABILITY

P- PERSPECTIVE

O – ORIGIN

Who wrote it? When? Where? Publisher?

  • Find out anything you can about the author - who they are, what else they have published, what work they do/did. Some of this information can be gained from the foreword, introduction or the back of a book, or at the bottom corner of the first page of an article. (Journals and edited books often include a list of contributors, with brief notes about their work.) You can also look them up in Google, or the new “Google Scholar” ( http://scholar.google.com/ ) - most academics these days have their own webpage, describing their work and listing their publications.
  • It is important to note the date of publication of a text. The historical context in which a text is written can influence the author’s thinking and preoccupations, as well as indicate where their thesis fits in the historical discussion of this topic and how it is influenced/or influences other texts (historiography).
  • The date can tell you how up-to-date the material in the text is.

C - CONTENT

What does the text say? Is there a clear argument?

  • Is the writer simply presenting information, or is she/he presenting an argument?
  • If an argument, what is the writer’s thesis – i.e., the statement or proposition that she/he is arguing to support?
  • How does the author develop the thesis from one point to another?
  • What evidence, examples or explanations are used to support the thesis?
  • Which aspects of the topic has the author chosen to concentrate on? Which aspects has the author not included or discussed?
  • Is the material comprehensive and accurate, or is the subject treated superficially?
  • Are there alternative explanations for the material or data presented? Has the author addressed these alternative explanations?
  • Does any graphic or quantitative material illustrate or restate the written content?
  • If there are any visual images, how are they linked with the written text?
  • How do the contents relate to what you know about the topic?
  • Which of your own questions about the subject does the author answer? Which are not answered?
  • Do any items puzzle or intrigue you?

 

N – NATURE OF TEXT

What type of text is it? Genre?

  • Consider how information is conveyed in different ways. A textbook, commentary, sermon, journal article, webpage, blog, email, letter may all be about the same topic but the way arguments are structured, information is given and handled, the tone of the text will differ.
  • In what style has the material been written? For example, is it formal or informal, simple or complex, descriptive or critical, didactic or persuasive, narrative or analytical?
  • How does the style and format influence your own reaction to the material?

A – AUDIENCE

Who is the text written for?

  • Often the genre will indicate the audience – is the text informal or formal? Academic?
  • Is the text written for a Christian audience?
  • How has the audience shaped the text’s arguments, assumptions, style?

M – MOTIVE

Why was the text written? What is its purpose?

  • Are these purposes explicitly stated? Are there other implicit purposes?
  • Is the text part of an ongoing debate? Where does it fit in that debate? At what stage of the debate was the text written?

R – RELIABILITY

Is the data correct? Complete? Does it stand up to analysis? Is it biased?

  • What is the author’s underlying assumptions? Are these explicitly stated? What evidence is missing?
  • Are the supporting evidence, examples and explanations well researched and accurate?
  • Were appropriate methods used for data collection and analysis? What was measured?
  • What were the results?
  • What do the authors conclude?
  • Can you accept the findings as true?

U- USEABILITY

Can you actually use this text in your study? 

  • A text might have lots of good information but ultimately is not useful to you in a specific context. Maybe it doesn’t focus on the question’s parameters, maybe it is out-dated
  • Can you apply the findings to your own work?

P- PERSPECTIVE

What is the perspective of the author?

  • Author’s discipline, cultural background, theological perspective, worldview
  • Consider how similar/different the author’s perspective is to yours or to the other texts you are using
  • Who agrees? Who disagrees?